


Coming Home

by ange__enchante



Series: You Feel Like Home [2]
Category: The OC, The OC (TV)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Blow Jobs, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:46:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22704922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ange__enchante/pseuds/ange__enchante
Summary: Seth returns to Berkeley for the holidays.
Relationships: Ryan Atwood/Seth Cohen
Series: You Feel Like Home [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1633084
Kudos: 24





	Coming Home

**Author's Note:**

> Even after all of this time I can't let these two go.

The front door opens, and Ryan can’t help but move his eyes to the door, disappointed to see Julie Cooper walk through door, a blonde haired boy in hand. She hands Kirsten a bottle of wine and pulls her into an enthusiastic hug before she moves into the room, helping the boy take off his coat before she takes off her own. 

Ryan absentmindedly takes in the woman’s appearance, how her previously revealing outfits have been replaced by a more classic look since she started her own styling firm. She had moved to Berkeley a few years after the earthquake, claiming that she had come because of the abundance of clientele “in need of her services”. Ryan had always suspected that she just wanted to be closer to family, even if it was by marriage, and was glad for the opportunity to be near his half-brother

Ryan lets his shoulders fall in disappointment that the man he longs to see has yet to walk through the door, but manages to give Jack a small wave before moving to grab some wine from the refreshments table that is set up against the fall war of the room.

He smiles politely at Kirsten and Sandy’s friends and coworkers, avoiding making eye contact with the professor in Sandy’s department who keeps trying to set him up with her niece. 

He glances at his watch again. Seth’s flight was scheduled to land 40 minutes ago and the man should have arrived by now. Surely Sandy would have called if Seth’s flight had been delayed. 

Ryan finishes his glass of wine and is contemplating another when the door opens again, and Ryan’s heart skips a beat as his eyes fall upon the man who walks through the door. He takes in the tight jeans and airplane rumpled hoodie before his eyes land on the man’s face. 

Seth’s hair is unruly and slightly too long. There’s about a day’s worth of stubble on his cheeks. He looks tired but happy to be home as he wraps Kirsten up in a hug.  
Ryan feels his throat go dry as Seth lets his mother go and glances up at Ryan, a smile coming to his face as their eyes meet. 

He sets his empty wine glass down at a nearby table and starts making his way through the room to the other man, conscious to keep his gait normal when what he really wants is to run across the room. 

Seth’s smile grows wider as Ryan makes it to the entrance, his face lighting up as he takes in the other man. “Hey,” Ryan says pulling Seth into a hug. 

He relishes in the feel of Seth’s body against his, taking in the faint smell of Seth’s cologne, and if he holds on a moment too long, Seth doesn’t seem to mind, squeezing the other man even tighter. 

Their eyes meet as they pull apart and Ryan’s breath momentarily catches in his chest as warm chestnut eyes met his blue ones.

“How was the flight?” Ryan finally asks. 

“Long,” Seth replies with a laugh, “but I’m glad to be back.” 

“To be home,” he adds with a tired smile. 

Ryan lets his own mouth break into a smile, resisting the urge to put his hand on Seth’s arm and pull him away from the other party goers, wanting to keep him to himself.  
In the years since Seth moved to New York he and Ryan had grown distant. Sure, Ryan followed Seth on Instagram and they exchange monthly emails, but they are cursory. Idle chitchat about movies they had seen, books they are reading, work. But now standing in front of him Ryan can see the tired slump of Seth’s shoulder. The vague circles under his eyes which, only hinted at in the pictures posted by him or his friends, were truly pronounced in real life. 

Ryan takes in the man who had started out as a friend before becoming a lover and finally part of the family that he so desperately desired. Seth had been the first person that Ryan truly loved. Had never stopped loving even when he became encompassed with his relationship with Marissa and Seth moved on to be with Summer. 

His first summer with the Cohens had probably been the best of his life and he always longed to go back there, even if he knew that he couldn’t. He had never felt so understood by a person and though he and Seth were still close, he missed the intimacy of knowing someone else so fully. 

He’s startled out of his reverie by Kirsten joining their group. 

Ryan half-listens as she asks Seth about the flight and remarks about how thin he looks. Sandy comes back from depositing Seth’s luggage in the guest room, putting his hand on Ryan’s shoulder and pulling him into a hug. 

“It’s great to see you, kid. I know you’re busy at the firm, but you should come around more often and have dinner with us. I know Kirsten and I aren’t as hip as we once were, but you could take some pity on a couple of empty nesters,” he jokes and Ryan laughs. 

“Yeah, it’s been a lot of late nights since we started work on the new law library on campus.” 

“Well I hope that you can join us for dinner a few times this week. It’s just so nice to have my boys back together,” Kirsten says, beaming at him and Seth. 

Ryan smiles, looking over at Seth. “I wouldn’t miss it.” 

He moves to ask Seth about his plans for the week when a middle aged woman who is wearing too much perfume joins the group. “Kirsten, is this the son you’ve told us so much about? Here from New York?” She intrudes on the family moment. 

Seth looks uncomfortable as he takes the woman’s hand and shakes it as Kirsten introduces her as Savannah from her book club. 

Ryan watches as “Savannah from the book club” fawns over Seth, asking questions about New York before dragging him away towards another group of similarly dressed women, who Ryan can only imagine is the rest of the book club, and starts making introductions. 

Ryan quietly steps back to the periphery of the room, eliciting a sympathetic and slightly worried look from Kirsten who follows Seth to the group of women, and leaning against a wall where he watches as first the book club and then other friends of Sandy and Kirsten introduce themselves to Seth. 

Ryan tries (and fails) not to be annoyed as these strangers monopolize Seth’s time, time that he should be spending with Ryan, before eventually deciding to refill his glass of wine if only as an excuse to keep himself from dragging Seth away. 

****

Ryan slides the glass door open, his body shuddering against the cool night air, a gentle breeze swaying the palm trees at the periphery of the backyard. 

He lost track of Seth at some point in time during the night, realizing that the man had left the party when the crowds of people started heading home, the living room finally emptying out. He had looked in the kitchen and guest room before determining that Seth was no longer in the house and deciding that he was either in the backyard or that he had fled the house all together. 

He lets out a sigh of relief as he spots a figure splayed across one of the pool chairs and he closes the door behind him, shutting out the sounds of the people inside. Couples saying good-bye and searching for their coats. 

He grips the bottle of water in his hand as he walks over to the brunette who’s features are obscured by darkness, only the occasional light from a cigarette revealing the briefest look at his features. 

As Ryan moves closer he sees that what Seth has against his lips is a joint and not a cigarette. 

He must have found Sandy’s stash, he thinks as he sets the bottle of water on the ground next to Seth and sits down at the bottom of the chair. 

Seth wordlessly offers the joint to Ryan who takes it, his fingers brushing against Seth’s and sending a shock of electricity up his hand. He takes a hit of the joint, letting the smoke slowly fill his lungs as his eyes follow the pool cleaner on its circuitous path across the bottom of the pool. 

He hands the joint back to Seth as he slowly lets the smoke out, the haze briefly obscuring the stars. 

“What are you doing out here?” 

“Hiding.” 

“Already? You’ve only been here two hours,” Ryan leans back against on his hands, looking over at Seth. 

“These west coast ladies are killer. I think Mrs. Cooper grabbed my ass when I went to refill the dip for mom,” he says with a laugh, taking another hit. 

“Is that all?” Ryan says after a beat, his voice turning serious. 

Seth lets out a deep sigh as he leans back in the pool chair, legs splaying around Ryan. 

They sit there in silence. Seth continuing to gaze up at the sky, the sounds coming from the house get quieter as the last few guests finally leave. Ryan sits in companionable silence watching as Sandy and Kirsten walk around the house, picking up behind their guests before finally retiring to bed, the house lights dimmed as they retreat to their room. 

“I just feel like Summer got New York in the divorce,” Seth finally breaks the silence. “Everywhere I go reminds me of her, of us, and yeah, it ended amicably but it’s still sad. The reminder that we failed, that I failed.” Seth takes another drag from the joint and passes it to Ryan. 

Ryan accepts the joint, taking a final drag before putting out the butt against the ground. He looks over at Seth again, hoping the silence will encourage Seth to keep talking. 

“I tried to date other people, you know,” Seth sits up, swinging his legs so he’s sitting next to Ryan. “People from work set me up. I went out with a girl I met at a friend’s party. I even hooked up with a guy from Tinder. But it just felt so meaningless, so pointless. With Summer we had this shared story, we knew each other so well, until we just didn’t and now, I’m here and she’s there and I can’t help thinking that I should have never followed her out there.” 

“I’m sorry man. I know that you didn’t come out here to hear me recount my tales of woe,” Seth says with a sad laugh as he moves closer to Ryan, causing Ryan’s skin to tingle at the sites where their bodies meet . “What about you, how’s your love life? Mom tries to fill me in on what’s happening, but I think even she has trouble figuring out who you’re with. She said you were dating some new girl, that you’d been going out for a few months.” 

“Yeah,” Ryan swallows thickly, not sure if the tingling that’s currently spreading through his body is a result of the weed or his natural reaction to being this close to the man that he had been thinking about for weeks, months- if he’s honest with himself. “I went out with this girl named Ashley a few times. She was a college friend of Taylor’s. Taylor asked me to show her around when she moved here. We hung out a few times but nothing happened.” 

“Taylor,” Seth says as if the name itself leaves a weird taste to his mouth. “I still don’t understand you and Taylor. She didn’t seem like your type. What did you ever see in her?” Seth looks over at Ryan, big brown eyes encircled by long eyelashes. 

Ryan looks into Seth’s eyes for a moment before answering. “I don’t know, I guess I just have a thing for mouthy brunettes,” he says with a small smirk. 

Seth lets out a laugh leaning closer to Ryan, dropping his head on Ryan’s shoulder. “Do remember that first summer in the Newport house?” he asks, as he looks at the pool. 

“Yeah,” Ryan replies a little breathlessly. 

“All that sneaking around. I thought mom and dad were going to catch us at least a dozen times,” Seth lets out a laugh, then goes quiet. “You know, I’ve always wondered what would have happened if things had been different. If I hadn’t been so obsessed with Summer. If you hadn’t found Mar-“he’s cut off mid-sentence as Ryan leans in and slots their lips together, swallowing the rest of his words. 

Seth stills for a moment before leaning into the kiss, his hands reaching around to land on Ryan’s shoulder and pull him in closer. Ryan allows Seth to pull him even closer until he’s almost sitting on his lap, putting his other hand around Ryan’s waist to steady him. 

Ryan moans into the kiss, the parting of his lips allowing Seth to lick inside, and Ryan meets the man’s tongue with his. He reaches behind Seth to slow their fall as he pushes the other man further onto the lounge chair as Ryan drapes his body over the brunette, slotting one of his thighs between Seth’s where it rubs against his growing member. Seth moans at the contact and bucks up against Ryan, letting him feel his length. 

Releasing Seth’s lips, Ryan kisses the side of his mouth, then his jaw as he works his way to the man’s neck. The smell of weed is still in the air but here he can smell Seth’s scent, a little warmer, spicier than when they were teenagers but still familiar, still home. 

He doesn’t know if it’s the weed or the fact that he’s finally getting to be this close to what he wants. That he can finally touch and kiss the man in front of him. The man that, if he’s honest with himself, he has loved since they were both teenagers. Too dumb to realize that what they had was true and not just a summer fling. But he feels like everything is slightly more intense, more vibrant than it was a few hours ago. 

He bites down gently against the pulse of Seth’s neck, feeling the other man buck against him in response. He runs his hands down Seth’s stomach, hands reaching for his fly, when the other man suddenly jumps, letting out a brief yelp that is thankfully muffled by Ryan’s shoulder. 

Moving back from the brunette, Ryan looks to see what caused the reaction and finds Seth looking amusedly down at the floor where the water bottle has spilled, the already loosened cap opening fully and cold water soaking the bottom of Seth’s left jean leg. He lets out a small laugh as Seth laughs breathily beside him, the spell broken. 

Ryan leans over Seth again taking in Seth’s heaving breaths and the way that he keeps looking at Ryan’s mouth and Ryan can’t help but want. He reaches out with his free hand to trace Seth’s lips and jaw. “Do you want to….?” He trials off and Seth nods shakily but eagerly. Pulling Ryan in for another kiss he says, “yes, definitely yes. Let’s go to my room.”

***

They stumble through the house, clumsily running into darkened walls and trying to be quiet, although failing spectacularly in their altered state. 

Finally, they make it to the door to Seth’s room and stumble in together, briefly tripping over Seth’s luggage which Sandy had helpfully placed by the door. 

Seth shuts and locks the door behind them as Ryan drops down on the bed his eyes still adjusting to the lack of light. He can see the outline of Seth’s body as he shimmies out of his jeans, kicking them to the side, before dropping to his knees in front of Ryan clad only in his boxers. 

Ryan buries his hands in Seth’s hair, using the leverage to pull the man towards him so he can once again capture his lips in a deep kiss. 

Seth meets Ryan’s kiss enthusiastically for a moment then pushes the other man away, giving Ryan’s bottom lip a playful bite as he pulls back. He sits back and wraps his fingers on the band of Ryan’s underwear, pulling the boxer briefs off with Ryan’s help and tossing them to join the piles of clothing elsewhere in the room. 

Seth nuzzles his face against Ryan’s leg leaving a trail of gentle bites as he makes his way up Ryan’s thigh before finally stopping at Ryan’s penis which is standing fully erect, a prominent bead of precoma on the tip. He eagerly guides Ryan’s cock into his mouth, swirling his tongue over the head and causing Ryan’s hold on Seth’s hair to reflexively tighten as he lets out a moan which he quickly muffles with his fist. 

Seth pulls back briefly and gives a small smirk at Ryan’s response before moving back in and continuing his ministrations on Ryan’s dick which he lavishly covers with his tongue as he takes the other man as deep as he can. Ryan finds himself massaging Seth’s scalp in a bid to keep from yanking at the man’s hair as he expertly pushes him closer to the edge. 

Seth runs his tongue over the sensitive underside of Ryan’s dick then tongues the slit, causing Ryan to bucks upward, pushing himself deeper into the other man’s mouth causing Seth to gag. Ryan immediately pulls himself back, slipping out of Seth’s mouth with a wet pop and apologetically runs his hand on Seth’s face. 

Seth leans up and captures Ryan’s mouth in a searing kiss then stands up. He slowly removes his boxer briefs before resting his hands on Ryan’s shoulders to steady himself as he climbs upon Ryan’s lap, bringing their leaking members together. Seth lets out a loud moan at the feel of the other man’s engorged flesh rubbing against his sensitive dick. 

“Shh,” Ryan muffles the rest of Seth’s cries with his lips as he takes their dicks in his hand and gives a few experimental tugs. Seth kisses back, the previously languid kisses replaced by a searing passion as he tries to taste more of the other man’s lips. 

Ryan moves his other hand to Seth’s hip and pulls the man closer to him, their dicks still held together in his hand as he strokes them in time with Seth’s shallow trusts. 

“I need you in me,” Seth pants against Ryan’s lips and Ryan nods in agreement. 

Seth moves off Ryan’s lap, feet landing on the carpeted floor and Ryan lets out a disappointed sound. Seth gives him a small smile as he turns to rummage through his luggage, letting out a satisfied sound as he returns with a foil package and small pouch of lube I hand. 

“Always prepared,” he says proudly. 

“”What a boy scout,” Ryan smirks, wrapping his hand around Seth’s waist and guiding him back to his lap. 

Seth leans in and brushes their lips together as he deposits the pouch of lube into Ryan’s hand. 

Ryan kisses back as opens the package and coats his finger with the lube. He trails his hands down Seth’s back before bringing a finger to gently rest against Seth’s puckered hole. 

He meets Seth’s gaze in the dim light, giving him a questioning look. The other man nods before capturing Ryan’s lips once gain in a kiss. 

He feels Seth’s body tense then relax as he breaches the tight ring of muscle and pushes himself deep into his body, giving the other man a moment to relax before he starts to slowly move his finger in and out of his tight hole. 

Once he judges the other man to be relaxed enough, he presses in a second, then a third finger as Seth writhes against him, murmuring insistently that he’s ready as he peppers Ryan’s face and neck with kisses. “Come on, come on,” Seth chants against Ryan’s skin as he shoves the foil packet into Ryan’s other hand. 

Pulling back to give Seth one more proper, filthy kiss, Ryan slips his fingers out of Seth’s body and wrestles with the foil package. Finally getting it open, his mind flashes back momentarily to the first time they had done this, how his hands had shaken and he had almost dropped the condom in his eagerness to get into Seth. 

His hands more sure this time, he unrolls the latex over his penis, securing the tight ring at the base while using his other hand to slowly guide Seth down until he’s fully sheathed and in Ryan’s lap. Ryan’s cock fully sheathed in his body. 

He can feel Seth trembling against him as he adjusts to the feeling of another person invading his body and he gently rubs his hands down his back. 

After a few moments Seth lets out a shuddering breath and places his hands on Ryan’s shoulders, using the leverage to push himself up and then down experimentally on Ryan’s dick.

Ryan’s head drops onto Seth’s shoulder, muffling a moan against the smooth skin then letting his lips rest against the pulsing vein at the juncture of Seth’s skin and shoulder, tasting the skin there briefly before taking it between his teeth and giving it a tiny bite. Seth reacts by bucking against Ryan, taking his dick deeper into his body. Ryan bites down harder, thrusting up to meet Seth’s downward strokes as their bodies finally move in concert, Seth’s fingers gripping tightly on Ryan’s back. 

Ryan continues to worry at Seth’s neck as the intensity between them grows. Before long Seth starts murmuring non-sensical dirty words into Ryan’s ear, his movements taking on a frantic cadence, a tell-tale sign that he’s getting close. 

Ryan stills Seth’s movements by placing his hands on his hips, drawing out an annoyed moan from Seth, a sound that is quickly followed by a startled grunt as Ryan flips them over. He uses the momentum to hike up Seth’s right leg as he pushes back into him, the new angle allowing him purchase to move further into the other man’s body. 

Ryan captures Seth’s lips again, sliding his tongue into the other man’s hot mouth as he thrusts further into his body. Seth’s hands move to his head, holding his face against Ryan’s as the other man swallows his moans. 

Ryan feels himself getting close, his thrusts becoming erratic as he reaches between them, grabbing onto Seth’s dick and pumping the other man’s neglected member a few time, hand coming up to wrap around the tip before giving a squeeze. Seth bites down on Ryan’s lip as his body tenses and Ryan feels his cock swell, spilling between the two of them. 

Seth’s muscles tighten around Ryan, the sensation pushing him over the edge as Ryan pushes into Seth’s body a final time. He allows his weight drop onto the other man who wraps his arms around him and pulls him closer. 

Taking a deep breath Ryan focused on his heartbeat, waiting for it to slow to normal before he pulled out of the other man’s body, removing and tying off the condom before dropping it into the trash can. He grabbed his shirt from the floor, using it to clean off his stomach before tossing it to Seth who did the same before dropping the shirt back onto the floor. 

“So,” Ryan says quietly as he slips on his boxers. “I guess I should head home.” 

“Or you could stay.” Seth’s eyes meet Ryan’s from the bed. 

Ryan gives Seth a small nod as he drops his pants back to the floor and gets back into the bed. Seth scoots over so his side is flush with Ryan’s, silence falling upon them. 

“I think you fucked the high out of me,” Seth finally says after the silence had worn long, letting out a small chuckle. 

“Is that why you-I mean,” Ryan licked his lips, looking at the darkened ceiling as his heart starts pounding in his chest. “Do you regret what happened?” 

“What? No, no way,” Seth says, turning to look at Ryan’s profile as the other man continues to stare at the ceiling. He swallows thickly before continuing, not taking his eyes off of Ryan’s face. “You know for years, even when I was with Summer, I thought about us, wondered what would have happened if things between us had turned out differently. If I had told you how I felt instead of going after Summer. If I had stayed in California, not gone to New York. Would we have gotten together? Would I have married Summer?” 

Silence falls between them. Ryan not daring to move or look over lest the other man stop talking.

“It’s been hard since the divorce. I’ve just felt so lost and alone. Hell, if I’m honest with myself, I’ve felt off since I left for New York. All these great things were happening in my career and all I could think about was how homesick I felt. And I thought that it was just that me and Summer weren’t working out. That moving on would make things better. And when that didn’t work, I thought that coming back to see mom and dad would make it better, even if it wasn’t Newport. It would still be home. But it wasn’t the same. It wasn’t until I saw you that I felt ok, that I felt like I was home. And I thought that you had moved on, but then I saw how you looked at me and I thought that maybe you-you felt the same way. Even if it’s just a little bit.” 

Ryan turns to look at Seth, meeting his eyes in the darkness for a long moment before leaning in and kissing him gently. 

When he pulls back he smiles at Seth and strokes his cheek, pulling the other man closer. Seth moves even closer to Ryan, tentatively sliding his leg over the other man’s and relaxing when Ryan doesn’t pull away and instead puts his arm around Seth. 

They lay in silence for a few moments, Seth’s head on Ryan’s shoulder before the blonde finally breaks the silence. “Was what Sandy said true? Are you moving back?” 

“Yeah,” Seth says, tracing an aimless pattern on Ryan’s chest. “Dad said that I could stay here while I look for a rental.” 

“Or- you could stay with me?” 

“Really?” Seth raises his head to look at Ryan again. 

“Yeah, I would like more of this. More of you.” 

Seth smiles widely leaning in to kiss the other man before dropping his head back on Ryan’s shoulder, nodding as he nuzzled his face into the man’s neck. 

“Okay,” he whispers against his neck. Smiling as Ryan’s hand tightened around his shoulders. 

****  
Seth awoke to find Ryan’s hand wrapped tightly over his waist pulling him against the other man’s firm chest. He blearily glanced at the window, noting that only the barest glimpses of sunlight could be seen, heralding the coming sun. 

Moving into the other man’s warmth he noticed something firm against his ass, moving against it before realizing that it is Ryan’s erection, a lazy smirk growing on his face. 

He pushed his hips further back against the other man’s dick, eliciting a moan from Ryan who stirred behind him, rousing from sleep. 

Reaching behind him, Seth wraps his hand around Ryan’s length through his boxers, stroking it to full erection before slipping it out of his boxers and guiding it to his entrance, which was still loose from their earlier activities. 

Ryan moaned into Seth’s curls, now fully awake, his hot breath against Seth’s neck as he started thrusting his hips forward. 

One hand tightened further around Seth’s waist as the other started to stroke the other man’s cock in time with his thrusts. 

Seth found himself warring between thrusting backward into Ryan’s dick or forward into his hand. He turned his head to muffle his moans into the pillow, gripping the arm around his waist as Ryan’s movements became more frantic and his thrusts deeper. 

Biting down on his bottom lip, Seth held back a moan as he was pushed over the edge, quickly followed by Ryan, the feel of his warm seed filling his hole. 

Letting himself slip out of Seth, Ryan rolled onto his back. He was quickly followed by Seth who rolled over as well, positioning his body under Ryan’s arm as he concentrated on getting his breath back to a normal cadence. 

They lay in silence for a while, the streams of sunlight coming in through the window becoming brighter. 

Giving up on any notion of falling asleep again, Ryan looked down at Seth, who gazed across the room, a sleepy but sated look on his face. Ryan smiled at the relaxed look on Seth’s features, the stress from yesterday at bay, at least for now. 

“Hey,” he says, rolling over to face the other man fully. “If we get in the shower now I bet we can make It down to Snooze before the brunch crowd gets in.” 

He watches Seth silently debate that pros and cons of getting out of bed before the draw of pancakes apparently wins and he rolls over. Stopping to kiss Ryan lazily before standing up and moving to the bathroom. 

Ryan follows him with his eyes as he steps into the bathroom quickly followed by the sound of the shower turning on. 

“You know, I thought this deal involved you showering too,” Seth sticks his head out of the bathroom door. “Otherwise they’re going to kick us out of the restaurant immediately because you, my friend, reek.“

Ryan makes a face and throws a pillow in the general direction of the bathroom but gets off the bed, walking into the bathroom to join Seth under the hot stream of water. 

****  
Freshly showered Seth made his way towards the front of the house in search of his coat, shoes in hand as he tried his best to be quiet. 

“Honey?” He’s startled by his mother’s voice coming from kitchen. 

Setting his shoes down by the door, he moves in the direction of the kitchen where he finds Sandy and Kirsten making breakfast. 

“Mom, Dad, why are you up so early?” he says, going for casual as he grabs a piece of toast from the pile that Kirsten has already buttered. 

“Someone left the pool cleaner running and the sound of the neighbor’s dog barking at it woke us up.” Kirsten says, giving Seth a meaningful look as she adds another piece of toast to her stack.

“Next time the two of you steal weed from my stash, can you please turn off the entertainment before heading inside to do whatever in your drug addled state?” Sandy says from the island where he’s stirring some eggs in a pan. 

“Sorry,” Seth says, a blush creeping up his neck as he moves towards the refrigerator to pull out the carafe of orange juice. 

He’s reaching up to get some glasses when he hears someone new coming into the kitchen. He stills but does not turn around as Sandy and Kirsten greet Ryan. 

“Good morning,” Kirsten says, handing Ryan two plates of eggs and motioning towards the kitchen table. 

“Thanks,” Ryan’s voice sounds gruff and Seth almost regrets the blowjob that Ryan gave him in the shower. Almost. 

“Did you spend the night with Seth?” 

“We were up until late and it seemed like a bad idea to make him drive all the way across town to his condo,” Seth covers Ryan’s silence. He grabs two additional glasses and juggles them and the orange juice to the table, only earning a mild look of disapproval from his mother as he safely deposited them on the table, only almost dropping them on the floor once. 

Sandy and Kirsten joined them, sitting in companionable silence as they pass the plates of food around the table. 

“It’s so nice to have my boys home,” Kirsten says as she takes a sip of juice. “I just wish that we could be together more often.” 

“You might just get your wish,” Seth says, looking up from his food. “I’m moving back to California.” 

“But what about New York?” his mother asks. 

“I need a change. I’ve never really lived in Berkeley and with my new job I can go anywhere I want, so I’ve decided to come back here.” He says, taking a bite of eggs and bumping his leg against Ryan’s under the table. 

“Well, that’s great news son,” Sandy says, raising his glass of orange juice in a congratulatory gesture. 

“Yes, you can stay in the guest room or you can move into the pool house if you need more room,” Kirsten says with a smile, already thinking about how to redecorate the structure. 

“Actually, mom, I’m moving in with Ryan. He’s looking for a roommate and I’ll be closer to downtown, so I won’t feel like I have to stay in to work,” he says after swallowing his food. 

“Closer to downtown, right,” Sandy says, sharing a meaningful glance with Kirsten and Seth feels the blush return to his cheeks and creep up his neck. 

Next to him Ryan gives a muffled laugh and Seth glares at him, giving him a look of mild annoyance which quickly turns into a smile as Ryan grabs his hand under the table. 

“Well, it’ll be nice to have the entire family home.” Kirsten says. 

“Yeah, it’s good to be home,” Seth agrees, hand tightening around Ryan’s.


End file.
